Building panel construction



Jan. 17, 1961 o. P. woLsTEAD 2,968,070

BUILDING PANEL CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 1o, 1957 WLM /IMM Nm@ Xx United States Patent O BUILDING PANEL CONSTRUCTION Olaf P. Wolstead, 1306 Howell St., Seattle 1, Wash.

Filed Dec. 10, 1957, Ser. No. 701,863

6 Claims. (Cl. 20-4) This invention relates to improvements in building panel (ceiling or wall) construction and is herein illustratively described by reference -to its preferred f orm; however it will be recognized that certain changes or modifications of detail may be made without departing from the essential features involved. A novel stud and joist structural member disclosed herein is disclosed and claimed in a copending application Serial No. 10,472`

filed February 23, 1960 by the present applicant.

It is known that walls and ceilings which incorporate sheet metal studs or the like and preformed cover sheets .f(i.e. plaster board, etc.) of standard size, or ev`en if cut to size, may be erected quickly, cheaply and with a minimum of skilled labor. Heretofore, however, nails or like securing means were generally used to secure parts in place, and erection was a slow, manual job. The securing means were generally visible, and were ditlcult to conceal. The resulting structures were not always as strong and durable as required, or were elaborate and expensive. l

According to the present invention, the entire wall (or ceiling), including the base sheeting and the finish sheeting, mounted on -the studs, is completed in simple and rapidly performed operations, and without use of nails or the like, at least on one side of the wall, the layers of sheeting being held together and being held to the studs or joists by an interposed adhesive.

In accordance with this invention, foraminous flanges of members are disposed intermediate the panel base sheeting and the surface sheeting, respectively, but in such a manner that the adhesive, applied in owable condition, penetrates or permeates foramens in the flange elements so that a thorough bond is provided over the entire area, between the edge portions of the base sheeting and the finish sheeting, and between these edge portions and the stud vflange elements. Application of the wet plaster or other adhesive over substantially the entire interface between base and surface sheetings avoids any tendency for a bulge or surface discontinuity at the joists or studs and assures a lasting strong bond between the sheeting panels. Since the flange elements are bonded in sandwiched relationship between and to the edge por- ICC 2 Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view through the wall construction of this inventionas employed in the upright exterior wall of a building structure, and Figure 2 is a similar view but illustrating theinvention employed in a ceiling construction. v

Figure 3 is an isometric view of a portion of the length of a blanked out sheet from'which the novel structural member is ultimately formed by bending operations, and Figure 4 is a similar view, showing the structural member in its finished preferred form.

A structural member (joist or stud) suitable for use with the present invention is shown in Figures 3 and 4. It is preferably formed of sheet metal, anda blank B of proper length (usually eight feet, for studs), when com-l pleted as shown in Figure 4, will include a web portion 10, a mounting flange 11, with a tumed-up stiffening edge I2, and an opposite flange portion generally designated at 13. The latter is preferably integral with the blank B and formed by an expanded metal process comprising the formation of slits 13C which become diamond-shaped openings when flange portion 13 is expanded as indicated by the arrow A' in Figure 3 to the extent of the width indicated by the dash lines there. The resulting foramens will extend throughout all portions of the flange portion 13. The flange portion 13 is slit transversely to the edge of the web at intervals (such as one foot each) along its length. Thereupon flange elements or tabs 13a and 13b are bent at right angles to the web 10 being directed alternately to opposite sides of the web to achieve the effects of a Adouble flange with a minimum of metal. The resulting structural member maybe provided at one or both ends with means for mounting it upon a sill or for joining it to a plate in the wall construction, but since such elements or other provisions to the same end need not necessarily require any special elements on the structural member proper, or are known in the art pertaining to the use of metal studs and joists, suchV details have -not been illustrated herein.

Such structural members used as wall studs 1 are shown-in Figure 1 incorporated in a typical exterior wall A construction according to this invention. The mounting flange 11 in this instance is the support for exterior vsheeting panels 2, of any suitable nature, and the flange eletions of firmly bonded sheeting panels, a rigid structural whole is achieved. Such flange elements serve as a spacer and screed, if need be, to assure uniform adhesive thickness over the sheeting interface area.

Where exterior sheeting is also required, the structural member flange, on the edge opposite the expanded ments 13a and 13b are the supports for two plaster board interior sheeting panels, namely base panels 31 and finish panels 32. The base panels 31 are readily held initially behind and in contact with the flange elements 13a and 13b of successive studs spanned by such panels. The panels 31 may be pre-cut just sutliciently short of edge contact as to leave room for the thin webs 10 of the studs, between adjacent panels 31. The finish panels 32, however, are preferably of a width that they will come into edge abutment when they are applied directly to the exposed face `of the base panels 31, and over the flange elements 13a and 13b of the^studs. These panels 31 and 32 are held in this relationship by the application between their surfaces of an interfacial adhesive as indicated at 33, which might be mastic, but which is preferably wet plaster. This thin layer of plaster when applied wet, preferably by spraying it on, penetrates and permeates the foramens of the flange elements 13a and 13b, and is of a thickness throughout its area about equal to the thickness of the flange elements. The latter then may serve as a screed or guide to thickness of the adhesive plaster layer. The adhesive plaster at 33, when it dries, thoroughly secures together the integrated wall construction, including the interposed ange elements 13a and 13b and the base panel 31 and finish panel 32, with the studs themselves. There are no nail indentations to conceal, or to mar the surface; and bulges or surface irregularities usually encountered in plasterboard walls, except with the most skilled workmanship, are avoided.

The studs are preferably formed with provision for mounting the exterior sheeting panels 2 without the employment of nails or the like, although absence of marring is of minor consequence here, since an exterior veneer sheathing ordinarily covers the sheathing panels 2. Preferably, a special form of clip or spike is employed, indicated at 4, the shank whereof is formed with a stop collar 40 intermediate its ends. One end is intended to penetrate a slit 14 in supporting flange 11 of the stud. Preferably, the slits 14 are of elongated undulated form extending lengthwise of the structural member. The slits are staggered in location at intervals along opposite sides of the median line of the flange 11 so as to accommodate spikes 4 in positions to hold the edges of abutting sheets 2. The spikes are initially driven through these slits from the outer side of -the flange 11, deforming the sheet metal suliiciently only at the slit edges to accommodate the spike shanks and without danger of bending or warping the flange as a whole. A tubular impact tool may be used to drive the spikes. When driven, their inner ends are clinched over as shown at the left in Figure 1, wherefore they constitute a secure means of retention for the sheathing panels, and a form of securement which is quickly and readily applied. Their outer end portions have a length exceeding the thickness of the sheathing panels 2, and penetrate predrilled holes in these panels when the latter are pressed into position as they are shown at the right in Figure 1. 'lhe projecting tips may then be clinched over to retain the panels. The predrilling of holes in panels 2 to accommodate spikes 4 may or may not be required, depending upon hardness of the panel material used.

Provision is also made for the support of insulating batts 5. These batts, frequently of lcosely-felted brous material encased in retentive skins 50, are secured along their edges to the web 10. The web may be provided with apertures 15, and clips or nails may be used, as indicated at 51, passing through the edges of the batts and through the apertures 15 to retain and support the batts.

The construction illustrated in Figure 1 is an upright exterior wall construction. The present invention is well adapted, also, to a ceiling construction such as that shown in Figure 2. Here, the structural members 1 serve as joists supported by resting their ends on the top plates of opposite walls (not shown), or in any other suitable manner. Thus supported, the flange elements 13a and 13b extend horizontally along the lower edge of the joist. The base panel 31, of plasterboard or the like, is inserted between two adjacent joists and is allowed to rest upon the oppositely projecting anges thereof. No securing means is employed, but as before, wet plaster is sprayed over the exposed (lower) faces of panels 31 including the expanded metal flanges 13a and 13b and the finish panels are pressed into place to be held by the adhesive action of the plaster and` to some extent by suction. Again, through the permeation of the foramens of the tiange elements 13a and 13b by the adhesive and the interlocking of such elements between the interbonded sheets, the resulting structure is rigidly integrated. Such ceiling panels are easily and quickly erected and require no special skills to achieve a workmanlike uniform appearance and structural strength. The integral bonding of the sheets of plasterboard to each other and to the tlange elements 13a and 13b impart greatly increased structural strength to the ceiling.

In each of these panel structures, it will be seen that the structural member, which may serve either as a stud or joist, is specially adapted for rapid, lowcost construction using standard materials. These structural members may be relatively light in weight since they may be of formed sheet metal, and since the substantial advantages of a double ange are achieved by the single stretch of expanded metal cut and bent into oppositely directed tabs which are integrated by plaster with the continuous marginal edges of the sheeting panels in order to impart any required additional stillness to the structural member such as that which would be imparted by a continuous metal flange thereon.

I claim as my invention:

1. A panel construction comprising a plurality of base sheets arranged substantially edge to edge in a common plane, a plurality of finish sheets edge-abutting in a parallel common plane, an interfacial adhesive mounting the finish sheets upon said base sheets, and supporting studs of sheet metal extending along the opposite edges of the base sheets, and each including flange means along one edge, a web separating adjoining base sheets, and tlange elements of foraminous formation directed to opposite sides of the web and positioned interfacially between the base sheets and the finish sheets and obscured by the latter, the foramens of the ange elements being permeated by the adhesive intermediate the base and linish sheets.

2. A wall construction as in claim 1, wherein the foraminous tlange elements are integral with the web of the stud, and comprise tabs directed alternately to opposite sides of the web, along the length of the stud.

3. A wall construction as in claim 1, including an insulating batt behind each base panel and intermediate successive studs, the web being perforated at intervals, and tie elements engaged with the edges of the batts and penetrating such perforations, for the support of the batts.

4. A wall construction as in claim 1, wherein the studs are disposed in a vertical plane, and the base and finish sheets constitute the interior wall, a sheathing panel ap plied to the mounting tlanges, and spikes projecting from the mounting flange and penetrating said sheathing panel, for support of the latter.

5. A wall construction as in claim 4, wherein the mounting flange is slit at intervals in its length, to receive a part of the length of the spike, and to leave the re mainder thereof projecting to penetrate the sheathing panel;

6. A wall construction as in claim 5, including a collar surrounding each spike between its ends, to gauge its penetration of the slits of the mounting ange.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,164,160 Arey Dec. 14, 1915 1,974,819 Koerner Sept. 25, 1934 2,101,001 Balduf Nov. 30, 1937 2,384,849 Pieri et al. Sept. 18, 1945 2,457,147 Hall Dec. 28, 1948 2,736,929 Nies et al. Mar. 6, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 435,206 Great Britain Sept. 17, 1935 738,967 Great Britain Oct. 19, 1955 

